Let’s Go! Speed up the Picking Process

Nov 02, 2018

You can quickly improve operations by placing faster moving items in a location that shortens the pick time. Consider all aspects: walking, appropriate height for products, bins, racks and the total number of employees within your warehouse. Warehouse organization can be timely but giving some attention to the fast moving items can have a significant positive impact.

Pick & Fulfillment

Time is money. Making sure that your pick process is efficient but the fulfillment area needs to complement your efforts. It can be time-effective to make sure that your fulfillment team members have the right tools, proper space to fulfill picked orders and is staffed appropriately to exceed demand. Properly stocked items will also reduce employee stress while increasing customer satisfaction with quicker delivery response times.

Sorting & Batching

This method can instantly reduce pick time and increase productivity. Sorting and batching can be based on several factors and we have listed them below…

SKU - Product line – Zone - Line item(s) – Transaction - Number units per order

Make life easy and consider sorting orders by number of line items or SKUs to pick. Utilize your employees by having those that are more experienced work the more difficult orders containing larger quantity line items.

Pairing

Pairing is another cost-effective way to improve the picking process. Evaluate your products and pair together SKUs that more often than not get bought with another product. The topShelf software can help your team and consider staging common items in multiple bins strategically placed throughout the warehouse.

If you have not invested in a Warehouse Management System (WMS) you would be surprised at how technology can reduce time, expenses and improve moral with warehouse employees. Contact Scout and let’s have a conversation. We put the “Let’s Go” in warehouse operations.